THE PENALTIES FOR A FAILED TRAMADOL TEST

Starting on 1 March, any rider who fails the tramadol test will be immediately disqualified from the race and, if they ride for a UCIregistered team, ordered to pay a CHF5,000 fine. If a rider fails the test a second time, they will be disqualified and given a five-month suspension. Teams will also face hefty sanctions. If two riders from the same team fail the tramadol test in a 12-month period, the team will be fined CHF10,000.

A third offence in the same 12-month window will be punished with a team-wide suspension of between one month and a year, which will be decided by the UCI Disciplinary Commission. The postrace test will be carried out by taking a small sample of blood from a rider's fingertip.